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Clancy group featured on cover of Phys.Chem.Chem.Phys.

Monday, May 15, 2017

Ryan Heden, current Clancy group member, and Dr. Brian Koo, a Ph.D. graduate of the group, now a scientist at Arkema, are co-first authors on a paper in the Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys. journal which was selected for the cover.

This paper provides a molecular-level computational study of the nucleation of a prototypical Covalent Organic Framework (COF) material from its linker and binder components. COFs are nanoporous crystalline materials with (invariably) rigid geometrically shaped pores.

This paper is the first of its kind to elucidate the mechanism by which COF thin films grow from an assembly of two different “Lego-like” pieces that chemically react to form the lattice framework. It addressed a problem of assembly and growth to determine whether sheets form laterally and then aggregate vertically, or whether they stack like domino chips and then the stacks link laterally.